Where to Obtain a Taiwanese Household Registration Record for a Japanese Inheritance

Taiwanese household registration records (koseki / chu-hu tang-ben) are issued only by household registration offices in Taiwan; the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan cannot issue them. This guide covers the three ways heirs in Japan can obtain them, the order of succession and spousal share under Articles 1138 and 1144 of the Taiwan Civil Code, translation and authentication, and the three-year deadline for inheritance registration in Japan.

Taiwan household registration certificates and death registration certificates are issued only by household registration offices in Taiwan. They cannot be obtained from the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan. There are three methods for heirs in Japan to obtain them: online acquisition using a natural person certificate (ziran ren pingzheng), appointing a representative resident in Taiwan, or requesting professional intermediaries to obtain them.

Why Taiwan household registration documents are necessary

In Japanese real estate inheritance procedures, Japanese household registration alone is sometimes insufficient. This occurs when either the decedent or the heir holds Taiwan nationality.

The Conflict of Laws Act Article 36 provides that "succession is governed by the law of the decedent's home country." If the decedent held Taiwan nationality, the scope of heirs and their succession shares are determined by Taiwan Civil Law. You must prove to the Legal Affairs Bureau or financial institutions "who are the heirs under Taiwan Civil Law" using Taiwan household registration documents.

Taiwan household registration, like Japan's system, has a structure that traces family relationships through connecting lines. This structure makes it possible to use these documents to identify heirs.

Succession order under Taiwan Civil Law (Articles 1138 and 1144)

Rank	Heirs	Spouse's Succession Share When Present (Article 1144)
First	Direct lineal descendants (children, grandchildren)	Equal share with other heirs
Second	Parents	One-half of the estate
Third	Siblings	One-half of the estate
Fourth	Grandparents	One-third of the estate
No heirs in ranks 1-4	—	Entire estate

The spouse always qualifies as an heir regardless of rank. The key difference from Japanese law is that at the first rank, spouses and children share equally, unlike Japanese law where the spouse receives one-half.

Where and how to obtain Taiwan household registration and death registration certificates

Acquisition Method	Who Takes Action	Required Items	Best For
Online acquisition	Individual	Natural person certificate and dedicated card reader	Applicant holds a natural person certificate
Request Taiwan representative	Taiwan-based family or acquaintance	Power of attorney authenticated at the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office	Someone in Taiwan can help
Request professional intermediary	Administrative scrivener, judicial scrivener, etc.	Power of attorney and other documents as specified by intermediary	Numerous old handwritten death certificates / unable to visit representative office on weekdays
Direct application in person	Applicant travels to Taiwan	Identity document	Planned trip to Taiwan

Two key points must be understood.

Only Taiwan household registration offices can issue these documents. The Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office handles authentication of documents like powers of attorney, not the issuance of household registration documents themselves. Many people mistakenly visit the representative office for this purpose.

Older death registration certificates increasingly contain handwriting. Translation and verification take considerable time, so calculate your timeline backward from your deadline.

How much translation and authentication is necessary?

When using Taiwan household registration documents in Japan, it is standard to provide a Japanese translation. However, translation requirements and authentication necessity vary depending on the receiving institution.

Receiving Institution	Documents to Provide	What to Confirm Beforehand
Legal Affairs Bureau (inheritance registration)	Taiwan household registration documents and Japanese translation	Translation requirements, whether original documents will be returned
Financial institutions	Taiwan household registration documents and Japanese translation	Authentication requirements vary by institution
Tax office (inheritance tax)	As above	Confirm with tax accountant

Confirming requirements with the receiving institution before collecting documents is the shortest path to avoiding rework. If told after collection that "this format cannot be accepted," you will need to start the collection process over.

Note: When submitting Japanese public documents to Taiwan, the procedure is reversed. Because there is no formal diplomatic relationship between Japan and Taiwan, authentication is obtained from the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office rather than through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' apostille or official seal verification. Do not reverse the direction.

When is the deadline for inheritance registration?

Even if Taiwan document collection takes time, the Japanese deadline will not wait.

Item	Details
Legal basis	Real Property Registration Act Article 76-2, Paragraph 1
Effective date	April 1, 2024
Deadline	Within 3 years from the date the heir learns of the inheritance and acquires ownership
Inheritances occurring before effective date	By March 31, 2027
Penalty	Fine up to ¥100,000 if neglected without just cause (Real Property Registration Act Article 164, Paragraph 1)

It is not uncommon for Taiwan documents to take several months to obtain. Do not leave matters pending with "documents are not yet complete"—create a timeline working backward from the deadline.

Whom should you consult?

Taiwan-related inheritance matters involve multiple specialists.

Task	Specialist	Yotsuba Assignment
Taiwan and Japan household registration collection, preparation of estate division agreement	Administrative scrivener	Yotsuba Administrative Scrivener's Office accepts engagement
Real property management, use, and sale	Real estate agent	Yotsuba Real Estate Co., Ltd. accepts engagement
Inheritance registration	Judicial scrivener	We will refer you to partner judicial scriveners
Inheritance tax return	Tax accountant	We will refer you to partner tax accountants
Disputes among heirs	Attorney	We will refer you to partner attorneys

Yotsuba Real Estate Co., Ltd. and Yotsuba Administrative Scrivener's Office are independent business entities accepting engagement under separate contracts and separate billing. Because registration, taxation, and dispute resolution are exclusive professional functions, we do not perform these and instead refer you to partner specialists.

If support in Chinese (Traditional Chinese / Taiwan Mandarin) is needed, please consult us directly.

Related pages

Source material for this article

Law / Source	Relevant Section	Effective Date / Notes
Conflict of Laws Act	Article 36 (succession governed by decedent's home country law)	Effective January 1, 2007
Republic of China Civil Code	Article 1138 (order of succession to estate)	Per National Laws and Regulations Database (Ministry of Justice). Reference date: July 28, 2026
Republic of China Civil Code	Article 1144 (spouse's succession share)	Per National Laws and Regulations Database (Ministry of Justice). Reference date: July 28, 2026
Real Property Registration Act	Article 76-2, Paragraph 1 (duty to apply for ownership transfer registration upon inheritance)	Effective April 1, 2024
Real Property Registration Act	Article 164, Paragraph 1 (penalty)	Effective April 1, 2024
Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan, "Obtaining Taiwan Household Registration Certificates"	Issued only by household registration offices. Online acquisition via natural person certificate and card reader	Reference date: July 28, 2026

This article provides general information and does not constitute individual legal advice. For actual procedures, confirmation by qualified professionals according to specific circumstances is necessary.